Congress Set To Approve $7.5B Virus Spending Bill

The Washington Post reports:

Bipartisan negotiators on Capitol Hill are closing in on a $7.5 billion emergency spending bill to fight the coronavirus, two people familiar with the negotiations said late Monday. The legislation is likely to be made public on Tuesday and pass the House later this week, before moving to the Senate. The people spoke on the condition of anonymity ahead of its public release.

Negotiators worked through the weekend to try to finalize the spending bill, working with a sense of urgency as the deadly new virus spreads inside the United States and worldwide. On Monday, health officials in Washington state reported six deaths from the virus. The figure being negotiated on Capitol Hill dwarfs the $1.25 billion request the White House sent Congress last week asking for new funds.

At this critical moment for coronavirus, we need an administration that acts with persistent and unrelenting transparency and decisiveness

But this administration, unfortunately, has spent years hollowing out the domestic and global health security teams in the executive branch pic.twitter.com/c7SrKI1OQT

— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) March 2, 2020